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Fire Style/ Dragon Blade
The Dragon Blade discipline was one of the first styles to develop after weaponry and armor became commonplace. It is a hard hitting style making full use of the user's strength to deliver crushing blows that might still damage someone or something that successfully blocks the attack. This style has fallen in and out of favor as superhumans, weapons, and armor have evolved over the years. Development and Strategy The Dragon Blade was originally developed as the "Fire Style." It was named such after several several knights complained they still felt the burn even after blocking attacks from this style. After the magic purge, it was named after the dragon for its raw strength and adaptability. It was created to trump other sword users with its powerful sweeping strikes being difficult to evade. This style was practically designed around two-handed weapon use and the range on these swings often resulted in wounding the opponent if they couldn't successfully block the attack, which when the style was developed was fairly common. Armor made this style less popular, as it was not considered a very precise or controlled style. The advancement of superhumans also made using the style problematic, as weapons could easily be broken using this style. The discovery of magical reinforcement brought this style back into use as it allowed for the weapon to cut through armor and withstand the punishment a superhuman could put it through. The strategy of the Dragon Blade discipline involves overwhelming force placed into horizontal or diagonal swings. Vertical and thrusting attacks were less common because they were much easier to evade and blocking an attack from a Dragon Blade user was already difficult in the first place. A lightly armored opponent would rarely be able to withstand one hit from a practitioner of this style, even if a non-lethal strike was delivered. For an offensive style, it was also fairly useful on the defense. Since two-handed weapons were more popular with this style, it was easy for the larger blades to completely block attacks from other slashing weapons. It had notable difficulty dealing with opponents that could get in very close as most of its attacks had very wide arcs. Variants This aggressive style gained popularity on the battlefield through the use of the Two-Handed variant, allowing the range and power of the larger weapons to completely overwhelm its opponents. Single and Dual Blade variants were eventually created and refined, but often not as popular because it was much more difficult to get the same raw power out of the style using one hand, which is what this style was usually employed for. Single Blade: '''Single blade users of the Dragon Blade would often be physically strong and used their free hand to throw powerful, quick punches when their blade would not be fast enough. This could sometimes disorient their opponents and lead to their death with a powerful follow-up from the sword of the Dragon Blade user. However, this variant requires the user to be much closer to the opponent and no longer makes use of the longer range of the typically longer and heavier blade. '''Two-Handed: The most refined and popular variant of this style. Two-Handed Dragon Blade users were often able to smash through an opponent's defense, be it shield, sword, or armor. It was advised never to never attempt to block an attack from a Two-Handed Dragon Blade and just avoid the swings entirely. Though the style required physical strength, it was not particularly difficult to teach. It makes full use of the range and power of large blades. Dual Blade: While an intimidating style to behold, it is often criticized as being too physically demanding. While two powerful strikes coming from two different angles were the death of many opponents, the style could quickly drain the user in any prolonged fight. This style usually takes away any kind of blocking power, as it is much more difficult to block or parry with the heavier weapons typically used with this style.